A Sunny Christmas or Meeting the Baudelaires
by nickelplated
Summary: When Sunny brings home someone very special on Christmas Eve to meet her family, she doesn't realize the surprise that he has in store for her as he tries to solve the mystery surrounding Sunny's relatives. Violet/Klaus
1. Chapter 1

Jonah was behind the wheel of his reliable, fairly new, at least new to him, Toyota, navigating the interstates with his GPS app on his phone. Through the windshield the skies were a dark gray, and so far the snow had held off, but the absolutely freezing temperatures outside had him cranking up the heater so that it blew hot air at his feet as well as his hands.

"In ten miles, stay in the right lane and take exit 12 on the right," instructed the female voice from his phone's GPS. Jonah glanced down at the map to see that the app suggested he only had 30 minutes to his destination.

He let his mind wonder. Ten miles is plenty of time to get the butterflies in your stomach all worked up. Jonah would be starting his last semester of nursing school in just a few weeks. He already worked part time nights at the hospital close to his university. He didn't love the emergency room, but knew he was getting lots of useful experience, and his job helped him afford a small apartment close to campus, and of course gas and insurance on his car.

It seemed as if everything was right on track for Jonah, with graduation looming in the next few months, a job secured with very decent pay, and he even managed to put away a small amount of his paycheck each month into a savings account. But the best thing of all that he had going for him was the beautiful girl asleep in the passenger seat.

She was fairly short with medium length, bright blond curls, heart shaped lips, pale complexion with pink cheeks, curvy in the legs and hips. Even with the small snores escaping her slightly agape mouth, she was adorable, the sweetest thing he had ever seen. But that wasn't all he liked about her. She really was the sweetest thing, kind and compassionate, witty and funny. He'd never known anyone as well read as she was. She, too, was graduating this spring, top of her class, probably, with a double major in food design and business management.

Jonah blessed the day he met Sunny Baudelaire, through the friend of a friend at a midnight study group for Calculus. She was always at ease and easily set everyone else at ease. He'd never laughed so much during a study session and quickly secured a date with her for morning coffee before she'd even had a chance to pack her books into her backpack. Thank God she had agreed and he'd been able to keep her ever since. They'd been together for the last four months.

His eyes landed on her left hand that rested on her thigh. Her fingers were long and she kept her nails short because she didn't like the thought of working with food and getting it stuck in her fingernails. It was soon, he knew. They hadn't known each other for very long, but he just knew she was the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. He wanted to see the diamond ring that he kept hidden in his shirt pocket adorning Sunny's left hand. They'd talked about marriage before, but always in a playful manner. He wanted to make it a reality, and soon.

Actually, this was going to be the perfect day to propose. It was Christmas Eve. They were driving all this way from University expressly to meet Sunny's family. It might even snow. As he steered the Toyota onto the exit ramp, he gently grasped Sunny's hand in his, bringing it to his lips for a kiss. "Wake up, Sunshine," he said quietly. "We're getting close now."

She smiled before she opened her eyes, turning her face towards him. "Hey," she said, voice raspy from her mild snores. She readjusted her bottom in the seat, pulling her seatbelt looser and rubbing away the crick in her neck. She squeezed his hand which he kept hold of. "You ready for this?"

"You mean meeting your family?" he asked with a small laugh. He'd always been a favorite with all of his previous girlfriends' mothers. He wasn't worried. Well, maybe a little. When Sunny spoke of her family it was always very highly, almost reverently. Her face would light up when she spoke of her brother and sisters, but those stories were far and few between. There were never any details from her childhood. She never mentioned her mother or father. She had a secret way of redirecting conversations without him realizing it until much later, when it was no longer appropriate to ask. He chalked it up to how they had not really known each other for very long. And, if everything went according to plan this evening, he would have the rest of their lives to learn all of Sunny's particulars.

Sunny directed him now, telling him when to turn left, then turn right, so Jonah turned off his phone. As he turned into the driveway of a very large home in a very nice neighborhood, Sunny squeezed his hand again, smiling broadly. "I am so happy that you finally get to meet my family. They are going to love you, Jonah!" He put the car into park and turned off the ignition. He leaned over the middle console to kiss her lips, softly and tenderly.

"Merry Christmas," he said to her. "You know I love you, right?"

"Yes. I love you, too," she replied. "Come on, let's go inside." Her excitement had her bouncing in her seat. They unloaded the car. There wasn't much, just two large bags filled with smaller wrapped presents. A couple in their mid thirties stood on the porch. They looked nothing like Sunny. These two had dark brown hair, both were tall and thin, with none of the roundness that Sunny displayed. The woman, dressed in a burgundy A-line dress covered modestly with a soft gray cardigan had her hands clasped in front of her, fairly bouncing with excitement, mirroring Sunny. Sunny ran to her and they embraced for a long time. The man, dressed in nice jeans and a button up shirt covered with a dark gray pullover, reached out his hand to Jonah as he approached. He also wore a short beard, glasses and a big, welcoming smile.

"Hello! You must be Jonah. We've heard so much about you." The man shook his hand firmly. "I'm Klaus Baudelaire." Ah, so this was Sunny's brother. He was much older than Jonah had imagined. His own brother was just three years older than him.

"And this is Violet," introduced Sunny, kissing Violet on the cheek before pulling away from her sister to hug Klaus. Violet pulled Jonah into a warm, motherly embrace.

"Welcome. It's a pleasure to meet you. Did you have a nice trip?" Violet said kindly, all the while ushering the family inside, out of the cold. The house smelled of cookies, and roast meat, and burning candles. In other words, a little like heaven.

Jonah was steered through a wide, bright foyer, down a hall where he caught a glimpse of the kitchen, white and square and clean, then he was pulled by the elbow into a cozy den. There was a large fireplace, dark comfortable furniture, and bookshelves on every wall. Jonah was sure he'd never seen a private collection of books so expansive before. A massive Christmas tree, a real one, took up the far corner of the room and filled the space with its pine needle fragrance. Strings of tiny light bulbs glowed through the ribbons and decorations, casting colored twinkle lights on the small mountain of presents that spilled out like an avalanche from underneath the tree. Jonah wondered briefly how many people they were expecting for Christmas.

Klaus turned on a vintage record player, placing the needle down scratchily to begin a Nat King Cole Christmas album, one of Jonah's grandmother's favorite. They sat comfortably on the chairs and couches, Sunny next to him, her thigh against his, and they chatted easily about the weather and school and their car trip north that day.

"Would you like a glass of wine, Jonah?" asked Violet, standing from her armchair.

"Yes, thank you, if it's no trouble," he replied.

"Sunny?"

"Sure. Would you like some help?" asked Sunny, standing up also.

"What about me?" asked Klaus as the girls made to exit the room.

Violet only raised her hand at him on the way through the doorway, not looking back. "Yes, yes. I already know you want some," she reassured with a laugh. She put her arm around Sunny's waist and Jonah could hear the girls giggling all the way down the hall.

Jonah stood and approached the tree, taking the bag of presents from the side of the couch to distribute them under its branches with the other brightly colored parcels. He was amazed at the decorations. Every ornament was literary themed. There was a white rabbit made of the thinnest glass. There was a black raven carved from some sort of dark wood, mahogany maybe? There were glass slippers made from crystal. There was a gingerbread house, a lion, a tiger, and a bright red apple with a single bite out of it fashioned from papier-mâché. He couldn't place every story, but wondered at the beauty of the collection.

"These ornaments are amazing," observed Jonah. Klaus joined him at the tree and fingered a delicate baby Jesus in a manger made of fine porcelain and painted exquisitely.

"We love books," Klaus stated simply.

Jonah looked around him at the towering shelves filled neatly with all sorts of books. "Yes, I can definitely see that."

"Do you like to read?" asked Klaus. Jonah felt like there was only one right answer to a question like that in a room like this.

"Yes, but right now there is little time to read anything but med-surg textbooks. Classes, clinicals and work take up most all of my time."

"There's nothing wrong with reading textbooks," Klaus said matter of factly, placing a hand on one of Jonah's shoulders as he rose from distributing presents. "I've read a great many of those myself. My favorites are law and medical textbooks." Klaus waved vaguely to a section of bookshelf that was the home to many large tomes that looked like they would bore the average man to tears.

The girls returned each carrying two wine glasses each. "Sunny told me you prefer white wine," explained Violet, as she handed him a glass of red wine. "I hope this will be all right? It's Klaus's favorite," and she looked affectionately at her brother, then handed Klaus the other glass. Klaus took the proffered wine from Violet's hand, then pulled her down to sit very close to him on the couch before she could take up her previous spot in the armchair. She didn't move away, even though there was plenty of other cushions to spread out to, but leaned into him, pulling her feet up under her. Sunny only laughed at their behavior and then handed Violet her glass of wine.

Jonah liked these people, but couldn't help but feel like there was something off, something odd, but he shook his head at himself. There was always inside jokes and little traditions that he wouldn't yet be privy to. He'd only just met them and nobody was ever like your own family. It would just take some getting used to.

They listened to music and chatted a bit more, the siblings catching each other up on everything that had been happening. Apparently, they were expecting only one more person for Christmas. Sunny's younger sister, Beatrice, a name that was spoken quite frequently in all of the Baudelaire's conversations, would still be arriving before dinner.

From what Jonah could gather, Beatrice also went to University, but also several hours away, living in the dorm on campus. She was scheduled to work part of the morning, but then would be heading over.

"Wow," said Jonah. "Putting two kids through college at the same time must be hell on your parents." He laughed, but realized quickly that he'd said something wrong. Sunny was looking steadily at the floor, cheeks pink. Klaus was looking at Violet, and Violet was looking at Jonah, her mouth a small oh. The atmosphere was heavy for only half a moment, and then he wondered if he imagined it because Violet was laughing, taking a sip of her drink, then standing with a push off of Klaus's thigh.

"Well," she said a little too loudly, a little too cheerfully, "dinner isn't going to make itself." She did give Sunny a small, sort of sad smile, then left the room. A loud scratching noise signaled the end of the album and Klaus got up to turn the record over.

"Did I say something wrong?" whispered Jonah into Sunny's ear.

She only shook her head. "Want to see my room?"

Hand in hand, the pair headed up the stairs. The walls in Sunny's room were painted pale yellow. A full size bed covered in a thick white quilt took up the far half of the room. Sunny had her own shelf full of books, but a lot of them were cookbooks.

"I keep my favorite ones with me," she explained when he stopped to inspect the shelf, although he knew that already. She had several very floury, gritty, dog-eared cookbooks stacked in a neat row on her kitchen counter back at school. Really, she didn't even need them as she had all of her most favorite recipes memorized already.

Jonah crossed the room to sit on the edge of the bed to look out the window. From there he could see his Toyota in the driveway, and a large pin oak that still held onto its dried, brown leaves growing tall in the middle of the yard. Sunny came to stand between his knees and he turned his gaze on her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him softly. She pressed her thumbs gently over his eyebrows then along the soft skin under his eyes, where he knew dark circles must be evident from his late shift last night.

"You could take a nap here if you want, Jonah," suggested Sunny. "The food won't be done for awhile, and nothing will happen until Beatrice can get home. I'll let everyone know you worked last night. They'll totally understand."

A traitorous yawn escaped his mouth. "Will you stay with me?" Jonah asked hopefully.

Sunny laughed gently. "It does sound nice, but I promised Violet I would make the pies. Want me to wake you in an hour or so?" She pushed him back onto the mattress, barely escaping his hands as he grabbed for her, but she rounded the bed, grabbed a blanket off the chair to cover him with and kissed his lips again before leaving. She cracked the door to an inch and then she was gone. It felt wonderful to close his eyes and sleep came quickly.


	2. Chapter 2

Jonah had no idea what time it was when he woke in Sunny's childhood bedroom, only that the sky had turned very dark, the sun low and covered with snow laden clouds. Jonah couldn't help but agree with Bing Crosby, that it was beginning to look a lot like Christmas, as music and the delicious smells of dinner wafted gently up the stairs and into the bedroom. Quietly, he snuck out of the door and down the stairs. He wasn't sure where to find Sunny in the large house. He peeked into the den, where the enormous Christmas tree remained lit and the record player serenaded the empty room, but the presents were left unguarded at the moment.

He could hear voices coming from the kitchen, laughter and off-key singing, so he tiptoed down the hall. He paused a moment to peer at the photographs that lined the walls in the dim hallway. Some were old, but disappointingly, no baby pictures. He could easily imagine that Sunny must have been the most beautiful baby. The youngest picture he could find of her here on this wall made him think she was about six years old. She sat on Klaus's knee as he read to her from a large book, his cheek pressed against her golden curls. He looked old enough to be her father, even back then. There were other pictures, too, just as confusing to him. There was a picture of Violet and small, dark haired girl. Violet stood behind- Jonah assumed it was Beatrice, on a small bicycle with training wheels. Beatrice waved merrily at whoever was taking the photo while Violet looked on, as proud as any mother. Then there was this picture of Klaus and Violet, and though the photo itself was innocent enough, one felt like an intruder to the intimacy portrayed there. They sat together on the steps to the porch outside this very house. Violet was leaning into Klaus and he had his arm around her waist, her arm draped over his knee. They should have been smiling for the camera, but instead he was looking down at her with a secret smile on his face and she was looking up at him and laughing. They appeared to be in their own little bubble.

Why didn't Sunny ever mention her parents? Who were these people exactly? He had a brother and a sister, and he knew for a fact that he'd never looked at his sister the way the younger version of Klaus looked at younger Violet. There was a weird dynamic to this family, very mysterious.

Jonah continued slowly down the hall, looking at each photograph as if it might answer any of his questions, but the people in them only got a little older, until there was the most recent of Sunny in her graduation cap and gown followed by Beatrice in her cap and gown. Beatrice resembled Klaus and Violet more than Sunny did. She had the same dark hair, appearing taller and more lanky than Sunny.

The sounds of running water and the clank of pots and pans came from the brightly lit kitchen, whose open doorway lit the middle of the dark hall. Wondering if Sunny were still baking he made to enter the kitchen but stopped abruptly when he saw only Klaus and Violet washing dishes at the sink. With their backs to him, Violet was up to her elbows in sudsy water and Klaus was taking each dish from her hand, running it under the faucet and drying it efficiently with a tea towel to stack on the counter to put away later. The off-key singing was coming from Klaus, who was bouncing his hip against Violet's in time with the music that still played loudly from the den.

Violet laughed at him, but on a particularly hard bounce that knocked her a bit off balance, she gathered a pile of suds in her hand and blew it at his face. Klaus dodged the sudsy snowballs and grabbed her wrists, pulling her closer to wrap her arms, wet hands and all, around his neck to begin a dance with her, swaying back in forth to the music.

"You know," Klaus began, speaking to Violet, "I've been standing here under the mistletoe with you for at least fifteen minutes helping with the dishes and haven't gotten a single kiss."

Violet looked up, surprised at the dangling greenery wrapped in a red velvet bow. "I didn't know the mistletoe was even there," she defended, "so if you've gone without it's your own fault."

"Touché," replied Klaus, stilling his dancing and pulling his sister even closer by her waist. He brushed his lips against Violet's in a very, very not brotherly way. Surprisingly, she didn't smack him or jerk away or tell him to stop in that sisterly petulance that Jonah's sister always used whenever her brothers were around. Instead, they stood there and kissed. The faucet ran, forgotten, as Klaus bunched up Violet's dress until he was running his hands over the backs of her bare thighs and she was tangling her fingers in the curly hair that grew at the nape of Klaus's neck. He backed her into the table and lifted her onto it, not breaking their kiss, and stood between her legs that she wrapped around him. Klaus drew his lips down her neck and nuzzled contentedly into her shoulder. "Let's go to bed for a few minutes, Violet," Klaus urged, his voice muffled against her skin. "No one will notice we're even gone."

Violet chuckled warmly at his suggestion, eyes closed and mouth parted as her brother slipped his fingers inside the collar of her cardigan, pulling it down, away from from her shoulders and pushing away the skinny strap of her dress. "Oh, you think you get to unwrap your present before Christmas?" she asked breathily, naughtily. Klaus continued his ministrations to the side of her neck and shoulder while pushing his hands back up Violet's dress.

"I don't think I can wait that long, Violet," Klaus murmured into her shoulder, and something that he did with his hands made Violet quietly moan.

Jonah felt like a teenage girl as he silently mouthed the letters, "O. M. G!" Jonah had to be perfectly honest with himself. It was hot. Maybe the weirdest thing he had ever witnessed, and he'd seen a lot of interesting things while working at the hospital, but still really hot…and even more confusing. Jonah was beginning to think he'd misunderstood who was who in Sunny's family.

The doorbell rang, startling Jonah nearly out of his skin, and a shriek from an unfamiliar room down the hallway alerted him to where Sunny had been loitering. She came thundering down the hall towards the front door, hollering, "Beatrice is here!" When she reached Jonah hiding in the dark she grabbed his arm and pulled him along with her. One quick glance back to the kitchen showed Jonah that Violet and Klaus were beaming at each other, and Violet gave Klaus one more quick peck to his lips before she, too, pulled him along to the front door behind Jonah and Sunny.

Sunny swung the front door open and there stood her sister, Beatrice. She wasn't what Jonah expected. Beatrice was tall, like Violet and Klaus, but she was dressed in ripped blue jeans, red and blue plaid flannel shirt over a rock band tee, with black leather boots and a jacket to match. Her dark hair was long and streaked with pink and she wore bright red lipstick. In other words, she looked cool. In one hand she held a small suitcase and in the other a paper shopping bag filled with presents. Beatrice dropped these to the ground without a second thought as soon as she laid eyes on Sunny and the two girls embraced, squealing a little, and laughing a lot.

Violet stood anxiously behind Sunny and tickled her sides to get her to let go of Beatrice so she could step in. "Okay, my turn!" Violet was kissing Beatrice's cheek over and over and Beatrice clung to the older woman. "I've missed you, Sweet Bea!" Sunny took Jonah's hand again, laying her head on his shoulder as they watched the reunion.

"Hey, Mama," Beatrice had a sweet voice, in opposition to her intimidating appearance. "I've missed you."

"Where's my girl?" asked Klaus from behind Jonah.

"Papa!" squealed Beatrice again, letting go of Violet to thrust herself into Klaus's arms.

"Merry Christmas, Sweetheart," said Klaus, hugging Beatrice fiercely. "You made it before the snow, but not before presents. Sorry. We couldn't wait anymore."

"Haha," Beatrice deadpanned. "Starting off right away with your lame dad jokes?"

Klaus tugged her hair and pretended to pout. "I've been planning that one all day."

Violet herded everyone into the house for the second time that day. "Come on. Inside. It's freezing out here."

Once back into the kitchen, Violet began busying herself at the stove again, taking Sunny's pies out of the oven and putting in the bread to warm. "Supper's almost ready. I hope you didn't stop recently for food," Violet addressed Beatrice. "There's enough here for a small army."

"It smells wonderful!" Beatrice finally turned her attention onto Jonah. "Well hello!" she greeted him cheerfully. "You must be Jonah," she extended her hand out for him to shake and continued, "and I must be Beatrice, as I'm sure you know." She had a lot of self confidence. All of the Baudelaires did.

"Nice to meet you," said Jonah. He would have liked to add that he'd heard all about her from Sunny, all good things of course, but he couldn't. He knew next to nothing about this family.

"Want something to drink, Bea?" asked Klaus, getting out a glass for her from the cupboard.

"I'll have a glass of wine, please, Papa," she replied, cheekily.

"Hmmm," he appeared to think it through. "I think I may be forgetting how old you are. Is it 14? How about a glass of apple juice or water. Milk?"

"I'm old enough," she protested. "Almost, anyway! Just a few more months."

"Don't worry," laughed Sunny. "I'll sneak you some of mine when Klaus isn't looking." Klaus gave Sunny a playful stink eye.

"You better keep an eye on those girls, Klaus," Violet played along, shaking her head.

Klaus poured apple juice into a wine glass and handed it to Beatrice. She only laughed and sipped at it. Then grabbed her things and headed to the den with her bags to unpack her Christmas loot.

Violet looked up from mashing the potatoes. "Sunny, do you and Jonah mind putting the silverware out on the dining table? I've totally forgotten."

Sunny grabbed handfuls of forks and knives from a drawer, then Jonah followed her out of the kitchen into a lovely, large dining room that even had a fireplace. She divided the utensils and handed him the knives. He followed her around the festively decorated table, and as she laid forks on the neatly folded napkins, he would lay a knife by its side.

"Sunny," he began quietly, not wanting anyone to overhear. "Whose house is this, exactly? Are Violet and Klaus your parents? I guess I was under the impression at first that they were your siblings." He laughed at how silly he would seem at this confession.

"No, you were right. They're my siblings," she answered, eyebrows scrunched up.

"Which one?"

"What do you mean, which one?"

"Well, is Klaus your brother or is Violet your sister? You don't look like either of them."

"I'm not sure what you mean. Klaus is my brother and Violet is my sister."

"And Beatrice is your sister?"

"Well," a little more uncertainty at this question, "yes."

"But she called your siblings Mama and Papa?" he shook his head at himself, trying to make sense of it. "Are they her parents?"

"Well," and Sunny definitely looked a little flustered now, knowing the implications to that admission. "Sort of?"

"It's only that I happened to see your brother and sister…well. I don't know how to say it." Jonah fumbled for the appropriate words for what he had witnessed in the kitchen. "Suffice it to say, they were not acting anything like my brother and sister…It was like they, I don't know…it might sound stupid…love each other? Intimately?" he ended lamely.

Sunny's eyes and mouth went all round, and her cheeks had turned bright pink. "Oh God. Were they canoodling? I told them to cool it while you were here. I'm sorry, Jonah," she shook her head. "I'll go talk to them."

"No, no," he caught her arm as she passed him. "It's just… well they looked so happy."

Sunny nodded, smiling softly. "It's a long story. They do love each other. It's a bit unorthodox, but I guess we're used to it. Klaus and Violet have raised Beatrice and me since we were only infants. They are a lot like our parents, only, I can remember when they were still just my brother and sister, Klaus and Violet, but Beatrice, well, they're the only parents she's ever known."

Jonah was astounded by this news. It only raised more questions, like, what happened to Sunny's actual parents, but there wasn't time now. Violet was coming into the dining room bringing dishes of food in each hand and Klaus was right behind her carrying a large platter of turkey. Sunny squeezed his hand and gave him a wink.

"Is there much more in the kitchen, Vi?" Sunny asked.

"If you don't mind refilling the drinks, I think we'll be good with one more trip."

Supper was amazing. Everyone chattered easily, laughing a lot, telling recent stories about each other to amuse Jonah. Dessert was really good, too, but Sunny was an excellent cook and she made the pies, so it was to be expected. Jonah wondered how quickly he would get fat if Sunny agreed to be his wife, and he absently checked the pocket where he had the ring hidden. Beatrice saw his quick gesture of patting his shirt pocket and they made eye contact. Realization dawned over her features and she winked at him, making a zipper closing motion over her mouth.

After a long, languid time spent eating, Beatrice sat back in her chair and rubbed her hands together. "Is it time for presents, yet?"

"Some little girls never do grow up," said Sunny and Beatrice stuck her tongue out at her. That's more the sibling behavior that Jonah was used to.

Everyone helped to clear the table, but after the leftovers were put away, Violet insisted she and Klaus could clean up the dirty dishes tomorrow. They made a pot of coffee and everyone sat in the den warming their hands with hot mugs of the creamy, sweet drink. Nobody really had any more room in their stomachs for anything else, so sipped at the coffees gingerly.

"You start, Beatrice," Klaus suggested. "Find us a present." He stood to pick out another record to put on the player, Barbara Streisand this time. Beatrice, without her leather boots and jacket looked a lot younger now, on her hands and knees under the tree pulling out brightly wrapped parcels. He could understand why everyone in this family loved her so much. She was as funny, witty, and practical as Sunny and had a certain charm and warmth that made her easy to like.

Jonah turned his attention to Sunny. He loved how expressive she was with her family, open and genuinely happy to be spending Christmas with them. Her banter with her siblings was very light-hearted and anyone could see she was truly thankful for every gift that she opened up. There were many books to add to her collection, and a lot of kitchen utensils, but her favorite thing was from Klaus and Violet- a stainless steel, chef's grade mixer that was so large he wasn't sure it could even fit on her kitchen counter.

Jonah was very surprised at the amount of gifts that he received from this small family. Sunny had obviously prepared them and he was touched at everyone's thoughtfulness. He also received several books, pajamas, socks, slippers, a shaving kit, a set of very nice ink pens, and several gift cards. The evening was a success. He felt like he could belong to this family, was willing to be patient to get to the secrets that bound them together.

So after Violet had refilled their coffee mugs and Beatrice had put all the torn wrappings into a large black trash bag and Klaus had restarted yet another record and all was content and peaceful, Jonah made an announcement.

"Oh goodness," he said loudly, feigning forgetfulness. "I totally forgot about a very important present for you, Sunny!" Sunny looked at him with a funny smile and her eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

"I'm sure we brought everything out of the car," she said. "Did you leave it at home?"

Taking her cup of coffee out of her hand and setting it on the end table, he slid to his knees in front of her. He took one of her warm hands in each of his and kissed them. "Sunny, you are the most amazing and beautiful and smartest woman I've ever met. I count the day that I met you to be the best one of my life. God has truly blessed me with so many good things already that I sometimes feel almost unbearably excessive knowing that I have you in my life, too. I don't feel as if I've done anything to deserve so much goodness."

The room was quiet except for Karen Carpenter warbling 'I'll Be Home For Christmas' in the background. Sunny's eyes were trained on him. Everyone's were. Violet was already crying a little and Klaus was holding her hand tight.

"I know we haven't known each other for very long," he continued, "but after meeting your family today," he glanced around at them, "I'll admit I've been a little confused, but I can see that they're the reason you are such a wonderful person. I want to be a part of this family. I want to be a part of your family, Sunny. I love you." He reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out the diamond ring that had been hiding there all day. He held it out to her, pinched between his thumb and index finger. "Will you marry me?" Jonah asked hopefully. "Will you be my wife?"

Sunny was dumbstruck, with one hand over her mouth and tears forming in her eyes. She carefully took the ring from his fingers and stared at it. She looked past him to where Klaus and Violet sat together on the couch. Jonah looked, too, and they were smiling in affirmation.

"Please say yes," Jonah whispered to Sunny, tears in his eyes now, too.

"Yes," said Sunny, nodding emphatically and throwing her arms around his neck to kiss him. Then everyone was clapping and getting up to embrace the young couple, congratulating them, and admiring the new ring.

"Okay, everyone put on your new pajamas," announced Beatrice, "and meet back here in ten minutes."

"Oh," said Sunny sadly. "We weren't planning on staying the night, Sweet Bea. We'll need to leave soon."

Beatrice held open the curtain for everyone to see that outside the window lay a thick blanket of snow and it was still coming down heavily. "It's snowing. I don't think you're going anywhere tonight. Besides, why else do you think Mama bought you all PJ's?" Violet and Beatrice laughed conspiratorially and each headed to their own room to change.

Jonah didn't think he would be able to make it back in ten minutes. All he wanted to do was be alone with Sunny, to kiss her thoroughly and start making plans for the future, but Beatrice was soon calling from the upstairs hall for everyone to hurry up.

Once back downstairs, covered in cozy blankets, Beatrice said very seriously, "If Jonah is going to be a part of this family, then I think it's time he knows the whole story." She caught his eye. "He deserves to know." Sunny's eyes were round and her cheeks very flushed. Violet and Klaus were nodding, looking to each other then at him and Sunny.

"You did say earlier that we were confusing to you," said Klaus. "Hopefully we can explain, but it's a long story."

"A sad story," Violet added.

"I like all kinds of stories, and with the weather it looks like we're going to have all the time in the world," replied Jonah, curious and a bit dreadful at the same time.

"Well, it all began when our parents sent us to the seashore of Briny Beach on a cloudy day…" Violet began the sad saga that laid out all of the unfortunate events that had befallen the Baudelaires, from a childhood home on fire to the fire of a last safe place where Beatrice's father was killed in an accident. They took turns telling of the many friends they had lost, their parents, Uncle Monty, Aunt Josephine, the Quagmire triplets, Jacques Snicket and Kit Snicket. When they reached the part about Kit, the older Baudelaires pulled Beatrice to sit between them, as if they could protect her from the news of her parent's deaths all over again. They told of all of the dark places they had stayed, the cold, rainy nights they had endured, and the villains. God, there were so many evil people in the world. Sunny told Jonah of the brave things that the Baudelaires had done to stay alive, but Klaus and Violet countered with some of the horrible things they had done, too.

The story went on until the very late hours of the night, or was it the early hours of morning? They finished the tale with their time as castaways on an island far from where they were now, the birth of baby Beatrice, then how they spent years alone there, raising the girls, building some semblance of a life. Eventually, the Baudelaires had felt safe on the island. Too safe. They decided it would be better to take their chances in the real world than live a half life on the island where nothing ever happened to them.

"We did not come out of our experiences unaltered," explained Klaus. "We were all changed. We've learned that there can be good and evil in each person, but there must be balance and education and an open mind."

"And you two have chosen to stay together?" Jonah asked trepidatiously. He didn't want to offend them. After hearing their entire history, it made sense that they would love each other the way that they did.

"We…realize…that our relationship isn't exactly…" Violet's voice tapered off, but Klaus filled in confidently.

"Normal," he said, reaching around Beatrice to put his hand on Violet's shoulder. "But we've been everything to each other for so long, mother, father, sister, brother, friend, partner…and then we were parents to these girls since they were babies." Klaus emphasized the last word by holding his hands close together, like he was holding a loaf of bread. "And if none of those horrible things had happened to us, then we wouldn't be here now."

"Yes," said Beatrice, with a large, playful smile. "I'd have my real parents instead of this crazy family."

Violet clucked her tongue at Beatrice. "Ungrateful," she muttered, poking Beatrice in the ribs so that the youngest Baudelaire yelped.

"What I'm saying is," said Klaus, laughing a little over the ruckus, "I wouldn't change anything. If I had to do it all over again, I would."

"Well," said an awestruck Jonah, "thank you for trusting me with your story." He looked to Klaus and then Violet. "I promise to try and make Sunny very happy. I fully support her every endeavor and am grateful that you would let me be a part of this family."

Finally, everyone headed to bed, hugging and yawning. Jonah saw Klaus pinch Violet's bottom on the way down the hall, and she smiled up at him. They did seem truly happy together, comfortable. Sunny pulled Jonah to her bedroom and they climbed into bed together, exhausted. Sunny admired her diamond ring before turning off the bedside lamp.

"Thank you, Jonah, for my ring. I can't decide which I like it better, my new fiancé or my new mixer," she teased. He kissed her forehead as she snuggled into his side. "But seriously, thank you for having an open mind about my family. It's a lot to hear. I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, but it wasn't just my story to tell."

"It's okay," he reassured.

"I love you."

"I love you and thank you for saying yes. You've given me the best gift this Christmas," he said, lips buried in her golden curls.

"Merry Christmas, Jonah."

"Merry Christmas, Sunny Baudelaire."

The End

**A/N: Just a quick question. I have several short stories of Klaus and Violet that are very similar to one I've already posted. They are set on the island and all just about equally naughty, so I'm unsure whether to post them. Let me know if you want to read them anyway. Hope you guys have Happy Holidays!**


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